Marciano..... the greatest cruiserweight.... if he was around today?

Yeah, I'm astonished just how much more powerful Pacquiao is after he's moved up seven different weights! I could tell even before the Hatton fight just watching him spar and hit the pads!

 

Other than the Klitschko's and Lennox Lewis, there were no exceptional Big heavyweights ...Dempsey, Louis, Ali, Walcott,Charles and Moore beat most of the big men of there era..Sonny Liston was not so Big but he had a great reach and Marciano hit like a big heavyweight and Evander was a big crusier but did not have exceptional heavyweight power in the Cruisers or the Heavys but he was tough and had big heart and good enough power...I think most of the Big guys were crap other than the Klitscho's, and Lewis. Carnera and Willard were good and Bowe was a class above them but not an ATG...Marciano and Dempsey could have carried more weight but they wanted to fight hard for the 15 rd limit

 

I think bringing back the fifteen round limit, mainly for the heavyweights mind you would be the bestthing that could happen.

 

I think Marciano would be the best of the modern cruiserweight divison.

However, if you match him vs the best sun 200 pound fighters, then folks like Louis, and Dempsey are in the mix.

Marciano is an intersting case study. The boxing scribes of his times refered to him as curde in his day, yet he over came. Sometimes when I watch him I get the feeling his will and power were enough to compensate for his short stature and short reach vs the best over 200 pounds. Othertimes I think, not likely.

 

While we are on the subject of Foreman we did actualy see him in the ring with the big heavyweights of the 90s and he did not look like a small heavyweight by any means.

 

That was just fat though.

 

But he beat them...

 

I'm not saying he never, nor am I taking away anything from his victories.

 

Are we talking 190 Cruiserweight standard or the 200 mark?

The 200 mark brings Louis, Frazier, and could bring Ali into the mix.

Just going by the 190 old mark. No one beats Marciano, no one.

Now entering a prime ATG hard hitting technical machine like Joe Louis at 198 pounds then I'll be there to second guess that.

Bummy made a good post with the comparison of big/small Heavyweights.

As for David Haye, Marciano kills him... and no I'm not joking. He would devastate him worse than the Klits just on grounds of aggression, work-rate, and punching power and coming at him.

Holyfield won't out-last him down the stretch.

Frazier below 200 loses, and above 200 he loses also. Heck 215 pounds he loses.

I don't think Ali would hold up as well with being less than 200. He would be even thinner and I think his power would be less than what it was.

In a 15 round fight I see Marciano being a nightmare for any sub-200 pound fighter. Joe Louis would be the most legitimate candidate.

In a 12 round fight things would be more interesting.

As for Roy Jones Jr... he just can't hold Marciano off him. He probably wouldn't be cautious fighting a guy that weighed near him (The HW version) which would probably cost him. Early to mid round KO. He may be cautious knowing Marciano's power, either way he can't hold him off.

 

Do you really feel the need to justify this? Marciano is about 7 levels above what Haye has proven in his career. It would be a slaughter. NO, YOU ARE NOT JOKING.

John Ruiz aint quite a Marciano, aint quite...

 

Yeah, Marciano had incredible will. You get the feeling he'd rather die than lose...
But when you're short and comparatively light compared to the giants we've seen over the last several years, even indomitable will and a great punch do reach their limitations.

I think it's really quite unfair to compare a Marciano to a Lewis, a Klitschko etc. These guys are much, much bigger than Rocky, who wasn't a big guy even in his era.
Size isn't everything but when the disparity is this great and the big guy is skilled and has power...well, those are some huge obstacles to overcome.

I love Rocky, but I also have to be honest about his chances against the really big (but skilled) heavyweights.

 

No, but I answered it. It was mentioned in the thread by the OP (I believe). Some people think incredibly high on Haye but on his abilities rather than what he's proven. So some might think the fight could be close, or a good potential matchup... at least enough to actually ask :shock:



John Ruiz aint quite a Marciano, aint quite...[/quote]

:rasta

 

Yes but we know there are repercussions to manipulating the system. Fighters loose too much weight and strength are weak for a fight ... Sure many guys could squeeze down but the damage would be terrific. They could also make 150 if they had tumors ...

 

Simple. Nobody beats him below 200lbs except Louis. If it were above 200, I say the likes of Frazier, Ali and Liston beat him.

 

I think that some fighters today accept that they will only be 80% on fight night because they know that even on that basis they will be too big and powerfull for the men of a lower weight class.